LOL!...yeah, those HD tubes and DOT tires don't give much space for easy installation. You ought to try that swap on the side of the trail for a fun adventure.

Sure do love that Trakmaster for the rear.

 

no thanks!!!

 

Have you tried that tire on the pavement yet?

 

Yes...at least through 4 or so of them. For a DOT knobby it sticks about as well as any other aggressive DOT knobby I've tried, and I've used a bunch of them over the years. The KLR650 was more of a challenge on any of them due to the weight and high CG of that bike, but unless the pavement is wet and you don't get racerboy stupid, they work quite decently. I've hauled around slower traffic on many paved mountain roads especially in Colorado, and just about all the brands I've tried didn't throw me a curve...pun intended. Now, they're not sportbike tires, but that should go without saying. If you use any aggressive knobby on pavement, you have to pull your horns in a bit, of course.

 

Just this last weekend I ran an enduro on my first ever trials tire. That thing was great. No more big knobbies for me.

 

Yeah I like those too.

 

which trials tire? i just put a shinko on mine.

 

I ran through a couple Shinko "Golden Boy" trials tires, 3.5 x 18. They were a little narrow and short and I wouldn't have otherwise selected them but the price was right ($40 for two off CL). The traction provided was great except for mud, sand and deep powdery soils. The ***** were soft and grippy. Got about 1000 miles per tire IIRC. I see a lot of trail riders around here running rear trials tires.